Rong Yu was locked in a stalemate with Gu Baiying’s spear when he saw Zanxing charging towards him. He sneered, “Seeking death!” He turned around and struck with his palm, unleashing a surge of demonic energy. However, when it encountered Zanxing’s staff, it was stuck as if hitting layers of ripples, unable to advance.
“Junior Sister’s ‘Mirror Flowers’ have improved again,” Tian Fangfang exclaimed joyfully.
Zanxing suppressed the invasion of demonic energy, raised her Panhua staff, and fiercely struck at the pitch-black scale on his chest.
The tip of the staff seemed to hit something hard. With a clang, it was rebounded, and Zanxing was shaken back by the demonic energy, but Rong Yu’s expression changed slightly.
Seeing his expression, Zanxing knew she had made the right bet. She shouted to Gu Baiying, “Martial Uncle, the shark demon’s heart is one inch to the left, it’s his weak point, attack his weak point!”
In an instant, the shark demon’s face darkened. The silver scales on his face dimmed significantly, and the black mist beside him grew denser. Before Zanxing could raise her staff again, a surge of demonic energy came crashing down, knocking her to the ground. The next moment, Rong Yu’s face appeared before her.
He grabbed Zanxing’s throat, lifting her up like a chick. Zanxing was horrified to find that her qi was as weak as a candle flame in the hands of this shark demon, unable to muster any strength.
Gu Baiying’s gaze sharpened, shouting, “Let her go!” His silver spear thrust straight towards Rong Yu.
Rong Yu turned to face him, but the black mist swirling around him turned into ropes, tightly binding Zanxing and tossing her into the air.
“Sister, I’ll save you!” Tian Fangfang swung his axe, but the blade of the Qianyang Axe struck the black mist to no avail. Meng Ying leapt to try and catch Zanxing, but the mist seemed to anticipate her intentions, swiftly carrying Zanxing away.
The disciples of Xiang Ling Sect and Yin Feng Sect were helpless against the black mist. They watched helplessly as the mist swept Zanxing towards a well.
A well? How could there be a well in the Imperial Mausoleum?
Rong Yu and Gu Baiying were locked in a fierce battle, and Gu Baiying was unable to spare a hand. He warned sternly, “Release her, and I may spare your life.”
“You’re so naive, Immortal,” Rong Yu chuckled softly. “Anyone who can see my weakness, how could I let them live in this world?”
The black mist suddenly dissipated, leaving the woman it had enveloped without support, and she fell into the well.
“Junior Sister!” Tian Fangfang’s cry echoed throughout the entire Imperial Mausoleum.
Mu Cengxiao flew into the air and descended into the well. In just a moment, he emerged empty-handed.
“Where’s Junior Sister Yang?” Meng Ying asked.
“In the well… there’s nothing.” Mu Cengxiao replied blankly.
In the night sky, Rong Yu suddenly burst into laughter. Gu Baiying’s silver spear attacked relentlessly, his voice urgent, “What have you done?”
“That well is the Demon-Slaying formation left by the former king to seal the shark demon. I implanted my demonic energy into Yang Zanxing’s body. The Demon-Slaying formation thought she was a demon, so it would naturally eliminate her.” Rong Yu’s eyes were filled with overwhelming malice. “Do you know what the Demon-Slaying formation is? You can’t possibly be unaware, can you?”
“That woman, I’m afraid she’s already gone, her soul scattered, with not even a trace of her soul left to find!”
*
It was a dark and damp place.
Zanxing felt her body, wet and soggy, mixed with a nauseating smell, like the odor of rotting water grass, emitting a muddy stench.
She was thrown into the well by Rong Yu, but this didn’t seem to be the bottom of the well. It was open on all sides, with a distant light visible.
Staying in this place made her uncomfortable.
Her Qiankun bag was lost during the fight, and Zanxing only had her staff. She leaned against the wall, stood up, and quietly moved towards the light, knowing she had to leave this place no matter what.
After walking for several tens of steps, the light in front gradually brightened.
It was a long corridor, with torches hanging on the walls, still burning. Light was emitting from these torches. However, these torches were strange. Despite the wind blowing through the corridor, the flames remained still, as if they were fake. It was deathly quiet all around, and the stench of rotting water grass became stronger, causing her to feel dizzy for a moment. She couldn’t hold on and half-knelt on the ground.
At that moment, a voice came from behind her, “Are you okay?”
Zanxing suddenly turned around.
A beautiful face appeared before her, a young man with piercing blue eyes and delicately shaped features like a painting. She didn’t know when he had appeared, but he was crouching in front of her.
“Rong Yu!” Zanxing exclaimed, startled, swinging her staff towards him. “What are you doing here?”
The young man slightly dodged the tip of Zanxing’s staff, looking puzzled as he blinked his eyes. “Rong Yu? Are you calling me? Who are you?”
After swinging her staff, Zanxing realized that her qi had been greatly depleted. She took two steps back, saying, “Are you a memory of the fish? We just fought outside… Wait, you’re not Rong Yu?”
The young man’s features were identical to Rong Yu’s, a captivating beauty that would be difficult for an ordinary person to possess. However, upon closer inspection, there were differences. Rong Yu had silver scales under his eyes and along his cheeks, but this young man’s skin was fair, devoid of any scales. He looked at Zanxing with a bewildered expression, seeming nervous but devoid of any hostility, unlike Rong Yu.
Moreover, as Zanxing glanced downward, she noticed that there was no black scale on the young man’s chest. He also didn’t have a fish tail, appearing to be just an ordinary human.
But how could he look exactly like Rong Yu? This innocent appearance… Could Rong Yu have a dual fish nature?
“Who are you?” Zanxing asked tentatively.
The young man pursed his lips and answered cautiously, “My name is Yin Li, a trace of the soul of the sealed shark demon here.”
“A trace of the soul?” Zanxing was stunned. She reached out to grab the young man’s arm, but as her hand touched his body, it passed through him as if encountering air.
Indeed, it was just a trace of the soul.
“If you’re a soul, then who is the person outside who looks exactly like you? Could he have taken over your body?” Zanxing asked.
“Taken over my body?” Yin Li looked at Zanxing in surprise. “That’s impossible. My soul scattered many years ago, and my body no longer exists. How could there be a possession?”
“Scattered many years ago…” Zanxing realized. “You’re the shark demon from forty years ago!”
Forty years ago, the Emperor of Li’er Country, in his pursuit of eternal life, had been sacrificing innocent girls everywhere and had even concocted a story about a shark demon to shift blame. Zanxing had always been unsure whether the shark demon mentioned in the rumors truly existed or was just a fabrication by the royal family to cover up the ugly truth. Until Rong Yu appeared, she thought he was the shark demon returning for revenge. But now, it seemed that the young man before her, named Yin Li, was the true scapegoat from all those years ago.